If In An Accident Don’t Be Afraid To Call Your Car Insurance Company

If by chance you get into a minor accident with a car such as a dent in the bumper. Perhaps you are attempting to park and you “ding” the other vehicle or you may hit another car with your door when you open it and leave a scratch on the vehicle.

Most policy holders believe it is best to pay for the damage without the help of their auto insurance company. Car insurance companies recommend to think about it first to see if it is in your best interest not to inform your insurance company.

When would it be appropriate to call your insurance firm even if you have a minor accident? Even if you barely scratch a car it is best to call your insurance company? What is important to realize is your policy is an agreement between you and the insurer.

If you read the policy throughout it states that you as the insured are suppose to report any accident and within a certain time-frame. It is smart to to inform insurance firm since another driver or passenger who did not look hurt at the location of the wreck might decide later to file an injury claim. They might tell the police they are fine then later claim they have an injury from the auto accident. In extreme cases the other vehicle driver may even want to sue you for damages even though it may not be true.

If you informed your insurance firm about the crash at the time of the accident then the insurance company will be able to get the facts and analyze them. Most important, the car accident will be on record and the company will be prepared to represent you in situations where you may need to be represented.

Even if you believe it is better to pay out of pocket for the damages you have benefits for reporting an accident. It is important to protect yourself even if the accident is your fault and you may hesitate to call the car insurance company.

There are certain questionable areas which it may not benefit you to report the accident monetarily. Your best bet is to call your agent to help you. If you know what damage was done to a parked car for example, that makes the issue of whether to inform your insurance agent or file a claim.

If you are uncertain about what to do talk to your agent if you have one. Your agent will help you look at your options including paying out of pocket for damages. Insurance companies say when making a decision to inform your insurance agent or file a claim consider your deductible.

Make an assertive effort to guess how much the damage is going to cost, how much you will pay out of pocket, and how it may affect your driving record against the cost of your premium. Normally if the cost of the damage is under $1500 dollars and you have a good driving record most auto insurance companies are not going to raise your auto insurance rates. It depends on the company some claim about $1000 is the threshold others are a little more.

Insurance companies are going to take a look at the big picture and see the amount of claims you have filed and the amount of the claim. A small claim is not going to have an impact on your car rates if you have not filed or have many claims.

If you are the type of driver that has filed a lot of claims then it may make sense for your to pay for the damage out of your own pocket. If you have had three or more claims during the year that is normally a threshold where insurance companies are going to raise your auto rates no matter how minor the car accident.

If you had two claims during the past year you may want to make a decision about paying the damage yourself so your car insurance rates do not increase by twenty percent or more.

The worse part is if you have had major claims over the past year your insurance company may pay for the damages for the minor accident then the insurance company drops you from their policy.

A big advantage of insurance is that you pay a company to handle the other driver take care of necessary bills and handle other issues which may arise. If you do not want to involve your insurance company you must take action to protect yourself.

If you are not going to file a claim be sure to file a police report and take pictures of all damage done during an accident. If you have a police report with pictures you are documenting the damage. Make sure the police call the other driver to assert he or she was not hurt during the accident.

It is best to call your insurance company but if you decide not to make sure to document as your insurance company would to protect yourself from an unforeseen damages.

Greg Fowler

Managing Member of AutoInsureSavings LLC, Greg enjoys writing articles to help drivers save on anything related to automobiles. Travel and enjoying the outdoors are some of his hobbies. The best way to reach him is at his Twitter or Facebook Profile.